Shapiro foundation, hit hard by Madoff, will make no new grants in 2009

The Carl and Ruth Shapiro Foundation, which was hit hard by the Bernard Madoff scam will honor the grant commitments its has for 2009, but will not make any new grants or capital pledges, the foundation announced in a release on Friday.

The Boston-based foundation had as much as $199 million of its $323 million assets invested with Madoff, according to the NY Times.

The foundation gave out $12.8 million last year, with its largest gift –$2.8 million — going to Brandeis University.

UPDATE: The Boston Globe has more on the foundation here. According to a sidebar to the story, the Shapiro Foundation gave out $1.17 million to Jewish causes in 2007.

Here is the release from the foundation.

Statement from The Shapiro Family Foundation on Grant Making Status for 2009:

January 30, 2009– The Carl and Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation regrets to announce that it will not award any new grants or make any new capital pledges in 2009. The Foundation made this difficult decision as a result of losing a significant portion of its assets due to the fraudulent actions of Bernard Madoff, head of Bernard L. Madoff Investments, LLC. At this time the full impact of the Foundation’s financial losses is still being determined. We are hopeful that the short-term decision to suspend new grant making will ensure the long-term health and stability of the Foundation.

As stated previously, the Foundation expects to honor its current grant commitments for both capital projects and multi-year grants including those in our four Initiative areas: Disability Inclusion, Empowerment, Youth in the Arts, and College Scholarship.

The Shapiro Family Foundation is deeply committed to playing a continued role as a philanthropic supporter of important programs in Greater Boston. Over the upcoming months the Foundation plans to meet with many of its Initiative grantees to determine the best way for it to provide alternative kinds of assistance.